Lily was still asleep, exhausted from last night’s overtime, well, if there were such things for a maidservant. The girl might be meek and shy, but in bed, she was a totally different girl.
But thanks to this, he had accidentally figured out something very useful. Adrin left a note before he slipped out in plain clothes complete with a cowl and cape. He got out without anyone noticing with the help of a heavily modified [Shell] spell and his [Sneak] skill.
The idea came from a famous quote, ‘in space no-one could hear you scream.’
Sound doesn't travel in a vacuum. He made the vacuum by creating an overlapping [Shell] before expanding the diameter of the second layer. Its layer of vacuum had worked really well at avoiding any sound from escaping the [Shell].
He had to make this when Lily was being too loud with her love declarations. Emi or Nerina probably had heard it but he certainly hoped not. He didn’t know what was going on with her, but the girl had no problem letting everyone know how great she felt.
The second effect of the [Shell] was more wild than the first. It all began when he noticed the distortion created by the vacuum between the two layers after he got off the bed.
The key to the effect was making the inner surfaces of the two layers bounce light in between them. This setting made any light go around the [Shell] before escaping on the other side as if it had traveled in a straight line. Anything inside the [Shell] would be virtually invisible.
He had tested by casting [Shell] to encapsulate the table. The table disappeared from sight, and only a tiny layer of distortion was visible at the [Shell]'s edge. He didn’t think anyone would notice it unless they were specifically looking for it.
But it had a drawback. This setting also made the inside of the [Shell] totally dark when all the light bounced around it. He worked around it using [Mana Sense] so he wouldn't bump into people and only used it when he really needed to. Of course, he would definitely work on the weaknesses later.
Both of these new effects of the [Shell] had made his escape almost too easy. The skill [Sneak] had confirmed that no one was aware of his presence as he escaped.
He didn’t think the guardsman would stop him, but he rather got out without anyone knowing where he was going. The single guard was too busy yawning and didn't even realize when he walked right past him.
As the megacities in the old world, this city also never sleeps, probably thanks to its round-the-clock dungeon economy. It would be interesting to see how people make money. His assumption was proven right when he got closer to the dungeon town in the third layer.
He disabled the [Camo] plugin and activated another. The [Shell] wouldn’t be visible to the naked eye, and it would only stop anything exceeding the set threshold speed. People would still see and bump into him while a sword attack would glance at it.
Emi, his very loveable accomplice, had made a simple map while they were walking around with Brian, and she had marked places of interest for him. The jewelry shop was one of them and Adrin stepped in to make some money to kickstart his nightly adventure.
He wasn’t even tempted to spend a dime from the stack of gold coins kept in the enchanted black tag. It was a lot but who knew it was trackable or not.
The shopkeeper yawned as the man measured him. Adrin took a glance around and headed straight to the counter. There were all kinds of jewelry everywhere but none of them could even match with the modern designs in his old world.
Adrin took out a black cloth and unraveled it in front of the shopkeeper.
The man’s eyes opened wide in shock.
“How much?” the man asked after checking every nook and cranny of it.
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Unlike normal smithing, [Metallurgy] could make a flawless necklace out of simple silver. The jeweler only needed to add any kind of shiny stone and it would be a work of art.
Adrin showed three fingers.
“Deal!” The man slapped three gold coins on the counter and greedily grabbed the necklace.
He took the coins and turned to leave before the shopkeeper changed his mind. The hulking guard didn’t stop him when he exited the shop and business was as usual.
Adrin chuckled. He was asking for three silver, but three gold coins worked just fine. He breathed in relief when no one tried to mug him after walked far enough from the shop. The trouble would only be an annoying delay at best.
The next destination should be the Diver’s market where all kinds of goods related to dungeon diving were sold and bought. His first stop was the blacksmith, and he planned to spend the first gold coin to buy a good quality shortsword as a decorative piece.
The forge was closed during the night and he could only pick the ones already completed. The purchase only amounted to two silver slates, and in return, he got eight-teen silver slates. The price probably hiked up but he didn’t have the energy to haggle.
In the next shop, he bought a couple of used [Lightstones] before something else caught his interest. A book that looked like it had stayed on the shelf collecting dust.
“How much for that?” Adrin asked the sleepy vendor.
The man perked up, “the dungeon guide? Twenty tokens,” the shopkeeper said.
“Nevermind, I’ll-”
“I mean, five tokens,” the man coughed out.
“Thanks for the discount,” he said and paid for a total of twenty-five tokens for both the lightstones and the book.
He got five tokens back from the single slate he provided. This should sum up the exchange rate between the different currency levels. He needed to learn about the fact more than he needed any of the items he had bought.
Adrin stopped by a streetlight and quickly went through the thin book. It had the information every dungeon, like the book called, a ‘diver’ needed. At the end of his quick browsing, he found something crucial inside the back cover. The ‘not for sale’ stamp.
It turned out the guide was supposed to be free at the local Diver Associations if he registered there. He chuckled and accepted his losses.
Adrin wondered if he should stop at the next place. He could try and recharge the [Lightstones] himself but he wouldn’t know if he was doing it right without damaging it or something.
According to the shopkeeper, only these girls knew how to recharge the stone other than the mages. They were guarded by two stern-looking men, but that’s not what made him hesitate to approach them. It was the white robes they were wearing.
After failing to think of any other alternatives, Adrin braced himself and approached the group of people. Instead of a cross, they had a triangle or something around their neck. There was no doubt that these were those kinds of people.
“May Azura’s light shine upon you,” greeted one of the ladies. “How may I help you?”
“I need these recharged,” Adrin placed the five [Lightstones] on the table.
“Certainly, but we require donations in exchange for the service.”
Adrin scratched his head, he placed down a slate after thinking about it for a short time. He really didn't know how much he should give, and he didn’t want to look like a cheapskate.
“Oh, what a very generous offer, would you like one of the sisters to accompany you on your journey instead? Where are your teammates?” The lady looked around.
“There is no need, I just need those to be recharged, thanks,” he replied.
Of course, she would ask for his teammates. Who in the right mind would send a priestess with a solo diver?
“Yes, right away,” the lady turned around. “Molly, can you recharge the stones for this kind mister?”
“Okay!” cheered one of the girls. A rather chubby girl came over with all smiles and placed her hand over the stone. She closed her eyes and concentrated before a unique glyph appeared.
Light poured out of the glyph not long after and the stones glowed in low light. Adrin took the stones back, checking on their luster.
“Each [Lightstones] will last for roughly two hours after you activate it, it is just like using any other enchanted items,” the lady helpfully explained.
“Alright, thanks ma’am,” Adrin replied.
“May Azura’s light guides your kind soul,” she said to him with an honest smile.
Next time he would try fifteen tokens and see what the lady would say.
He finished the basic shopping while rereading the guide. Finding the guide was not a waste because now he knew exactly which dungeon was suitable for his adventure. There were three of them in total and his destination was in the town after this one.
Walking would be a pain, but he might have just the thing to solve his current problem. Adrin activated his [Spell Scribe] skill and began working on a prototype. Half an hour later, he was riding on two special [Shells] which protected his feet while they rolled on the ground. The [Rotation] glyphs were among the few made as examples in the Book of Runes, and he was surprised that no one had made full use of it.
These [Roller-Shells] might become popular if he made it public, but for now, he would enjoy the convenience of personal transport. He just needed to remember to bring back souvenirs for Emi or she might sulk.